Information processing unit and information processing related units

ABSTRACT

A labor of disconnecting many cables is omitted even when carrying a file basestation with an external storage loaded together with a main body. An information processing unit comprises: a main body having a CPU, a keyboard and a display unit; a file basestation with an external storage, such as an FD•D or a CD-ROM•D, loaded; and a portreplicator with many connectors loaded. Removal of the main body alone from the portreplicator or removal of the main body and the file basestation can omit the labor of disconnecting many cables connected to the portreplicator.

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/788,529, filed Feb.21, 2001 now U.S. Pat No. 6,606,243, which is a continuation of Ser. No.09/063,444, filed Apr. 21, 1998 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,201,693 issued Mar.13, 2001.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an information processing unitcomprising a main body of information processing unit referred to asportable computer or the like and a device for extending the function ofthis main body.

BACKGROUND ART

Some conventional information processing unit comprises a main bodyhaving a CPU, a keyboard and a display unit, and a file basestationhaving an external storage such as floppy disk drive (hereinafter,abbreviated to FD•D). Normally, with the main body placed on the filebasestation, this information processing unit is used in a combinedstate of both, whereas, disconnected from the file basestation, the mainbody alone is used at the moving time of an operator. In the filebasestation, many connectors for the signal connection to variousexternal equipment are provided, whereas the number of connectors forthe signal connection to external equipment is reduced to the necessaryminimum in the main body. Such a provision of many connectors and thelike in the file basestation is because, if the main body and aplurality of external equipment are cable-connected via connectors,there occurs the need for individually disconnecting the cablesconnected to the main body when an operator disconnects the main bodyfrom the file basestation and uses the main body alone to move tosomewhere else.

Like this, in the background art, the information processing unitcomprises two bodies of the main body and the other device (here, filebasestation), while the function of the main body on one side isminimized and a function to be extended is afforded to the other device,thus promoting the function furnished as information processing unit andmaintaining the portability of the main body on the other hand.

Incidentally, those composed of two bodies of the main body and theother device are described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No.8-123589 and the like.

In the background art mentioned above, however, there are problems thatmany cables connected to many connectors of a file basestation must bedisconnected, thus taking awfully much labor, when one needs theexternal storage together with the main body of information processingunit at the moved site and goes with the file basestation as well as themain body.

The present invention is made with an eye to such conventional problemsand its object is to provide an information processing unit and theinformation processing related unit in which no labor on disconnectingmany cables is required when one goes with the file basestation as wellas the main body while maintaining the portability of the main body.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The first information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedabove is an information processing unit with a keyboard, a display unit,a plurality of external storages and a plurality of connectors for thesignal connection to external equipment, comprising:

a main body having the keyboard, a CPU, a memory, a main body casing andthe display unit attached to the main body casing;

a file basestation having the external storages and a file basestationcasing for housing them; and

a portreplicator having the connectors and a portreplicator casing formounting it, wherein the main body has a first docking connector on themain processing unit side for receiving/sending a signal with the abovebasestation and a second docking connector on the main processing unitside for receiving/sending a signal with the portreplicator; the filebasestation has a docking connector on the file basestation directlyconnected to the first docking connector on the main processing unitside for receiving/sending a signal with the main body; and theportreplicator has a docking connector on the portreplicator directlyconnected to the second docking connector on the main processing unitside for receiving/sending a signal with the main body.

Incidentally, in the above description, “direct connection” betweenconnectors means that the connectors are connected to each other not viaa cable or the like.

Besides, a second information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is the first information processing unit, wherein themain body casing, taking the shape of a nearly rectangularparallelopiped, has a top plate with the key face of the keyboardexposed therefrom, a bottom plate opposed to the top plate, a frontplate facing to the side of properly operating the keyboard, a backplate opposed to the front plate and two side plates opposed to eachother, the file basestation casing in the shape of a nearly rectangularparallelopiped has top and bottom plates mutually opposed to each other,front and back plates mutually opposed to each other at a distancesubstantially identical to the mutual one of the front and back platesof the main body casing and two side plates opposed to each other at adistance substantially identical to the mutual one of the side plates ofthe main body casing, the portreplicator has top and bottom platesmutually opposed to each other, front and back plates mutually opposedto each other and two side plates opposed to each other at a distancesubstantially identical to the mutual one of the side plates of the mainbody casing, the first docking connector on the main processing unitside of the main body is provided on the bottom plate of the main bodycasing, the second docking connector on the main processing unit side ofthe main body is provided on the back plate of the main body casing, thedocking connector on the file basestation side is provided at a positionas comes into contact with the first docking connector on the mainprocessing unit side when bringing the top plate of the file basestationcasing into contact with the bottom plate of the main body casing,making the front plate of the file basestation casing substantiallycoincident in position with the front plate of the main body casing andmaking the side plates of the file basestation casing substantiallycoincident in position with the side plates of the main body casing, andthe docking connector on the portreplicator side is provided at aposition as comes into contact with the second docking connector on themain processing unit side when bringing the top plate of theportreplicator casing into contact with the back plate of the main bodycasing, making the two side plates of the portreplicator casingsubstantially coincident in position with the two side plates of themain body casing.

A third information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedabove is the second information processing unit, further comprising: aheight adjusting stand having a top plate in contact with the bottomplate of the portreplicator casing and a bottom plate opposed to the topplate wherein the spacing between the top plate and the bottom plate issubstantially equal to the spacing between the top plate and the bottomplate of the file basestation.

A fourth information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedis any one of the above information processing units, wherein theexternal storage has a connector detachable from the file basestationcasing for receiving/sending a signal with the main body and an externalstorage connector directly or indirectly connectable to the connector ofthe external storage is provided on the surface of the main body casing.

A fifth information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedabove is the second or third information processing unit, wherein theexternal storage has a connector detachable from the file basestationcasing for receiving/sending a signal with the main body, an externalstorage connector directly or indirectly connectable to the connector ofthe external storage is provided on any one plate of the front plate,the back plate and both the lateral plates and a connector connectionregulating member is provided which covers at least a part of theexternal storage connector provided on the main body casing in directlyconnecting the first docking connector on the main processing unit sideto the docking connector on the file basestation.

Besides, a sixth information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is any one of the above information processing units,further comprising: mechanical coupling means capable of maintainingboth connections even if one is submitted to its self weight in adirection of separating the other connection when the main body ofinformation processing unit and the file basestation are connecteddirectly by means of the docking connectors of both.

Besides, a seventh information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is any one of the second, third and fifth informationprocessing units, further comprising: mechanical coupling means capableof maintaining both connections even if one is submitted to its selfweight in a direction of separating the other connection when the mainbody of information processing unit and the file basestation areconnected by means of the docking connectors of both, wherein themechanical coupling means comprises a coupler provided on the filebasestation casing with an engaging portion formed at the tip and freelyemergent from the top plate of the file basestation casing and a coupledtool provided on the bottom plate of the main body casing for engagingwith the engaging portion of the coupler.

Besides, an eighth information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is any one of the second, third, fifth and seventhinformation processing units, wherein a high-temperature air intake isformed in the front plate of the portreplicator casing.

A ninth information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedabove is any one of the above information processing units, wherein themain body has an external power supply connector for accepting anexternal power and/or a battery, a power switch and power supply controlmeans connected not only to an external power supply connector and/or abattery by means of a power supply line but also to the power switch bymeans of a signal line.

A tenth information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedabove is the ninth information processing unit, wherein the filebasestation has an external power supply connector for receiving anexternal power and the external power supply connector of the filebasestation is connected via the first docking connector on the mainprocessing unit side and the docking connector on the file basestationto the power supply control means of the main body by means of the powersupply line when the first docking connector on the main processing unitside and the docking connector on the file basestation are connected.

Besides, an eleventh information processing unit for attaining theobject mentioned above is any one of the ninth and tenth informationprocessing units, wherein the portreplicator has an external powersupply connector for receiving an external power and the external powersupply connector of the portreplicator is connected via the seconddocking connector on the main processing unit side and the dockingconnector on the portreplicator to the power supply control means of themain body by means of the power supply line when the second dockingconnector on the main processing unit side and the docking connector onthe portreplicator are connected.

A twelfth information processing unit for attaining the object mentionedabove is any one of the ninth to eleventh information processing units,wherein the file basestation has a power switch and the power switch ofthe file basestation is connected via the first docking connector on themain processing unit side and the docking connector on the filebasestation to the power supply control means of the main body by meansof the signal line when the first docking connector on the mainprocessing unit side and the docking connector on the file basestationare connected.

A thirteenth information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is any one of the ninth to twelfth informationprocessing units, wherein the portreplicator has a power switch and thepower switch of the portreplicator is connected via the second dockingconnector on the main processing unit side and the docking connector onthe portreplicator to the power supply control means of the main body bymeans of the signal line when the second docking connector on the mainprocessing unit side and the docking connector on the portreplicator areconnected.

A fourteenth information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is any one of the above information processing units,comprising: a cylinder lock having an inner cylinder with a key grooveformed on one end face, a hook portion fixed on the other end face andan outer cylinder for housing the inner cylinder rotatably for the caseof inserting a key in the key groove or unrotatably for the case ofinserting no key in the key groove, wherein the outer cylinder has oneend face with the one end face of the inner cylinder exposed and theother end face with the hook portion fixed on the other end face of theinner cylinder protruding, and at least one of the main body, the filebasestation and the portreplicator has a device which can be housed inits casing but also detached from the casing and whose end face isexposed from the casing, a lock hole is formed on the casing which canbe inserted into the casing when the hook portion of the cylinder lockis at a specific angle to the casing and cannot come off unless itbecomes at the specific angle to the casing if inserted once, and thelock hole is formed at a position among the surface of the casing wherethe other end face of the outer cylinder of the cylinder lock istouchable to the end face of the device inserted in the casing when thehook portion of the cylinder lock is inserted into the lock hole.

A fifteenth information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is the fourteenth information processing unit, wherein alinkage wire having a linkage portion for being linked to a specifiedarticle is attached to the outer cylinder of the cylinder lock.

A sixteenth information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is any one of the information processing units, wherein,the main body casing has a top plate with the key face of the keyboardexposed, whose outside surface undergoes an antimicrobial treatment.

The main body of information processing unit for attaining the objectmentioned above is a main body of information processing unit with akeyboard, a CPU, a memory, a main body casing for mounting these and adisplay unit attached to the main body casing, comprising: a firstconnector on the main processing unit side for receiving/sending asignal and power with a file basestation having a plurality of externalstorages loaded; and

a second docking connector on the main processing unit side forreceiving/sending a signal with a portreplicator having a plurality ofconnectors loaded.

The file basestation for attaining the object mentioned above is a filebasestation with a keyboard, a CPU, a memory, a main body casing formounting these and a display unit attached to the main body casing,comprising: a plurality of external storages;

an external power supply connector for receiving an external power;

a docking connector not only for sending the power received from theexternal power supply connector to the main body of the informationprocessing unit but also for receiving/sending a signal with the mainbody of the information processing unit; and a casing not only forhousing the external storages but also for mounting the external powersupply connector and the docking connector.

Here, the file basestation may have a power switch for starting the filebasestation together with the main body of the information processingunit when the main body of the information processing unit and the filebasestation are connected via the docking connectors for both.

The portreplicator for attaining the object mentioned above is aportreplicator with a keyboard, a CPU, a memory, a main body casing formounting these and a display unit attached to the main body casing,comprising:

a plurality of connectors for the signal connection of an externalequipment;

an external power supply connector for receiving an external power;

a docking connector not only for sending the power received from theexternal power supply connector to the main body of the informationprocessing unit but also for receiving/sending a signal with the mainbody of the information processing unit; and a casing for mounting theconnectors, the external power supply connector and the dockingconnector.

Here, the portreplicator may have a power switch for starting the mainbody of the information processing unit when the main body of theinformation processing unit and the above portreplicator are connectedvia the docking connectors for both.

The information processing unit for attaining another object is aninformation processing unit comprising a CPU, a storage (primary HardDisk Drive), a plurality of key switches composing a keyboard, a topplate and a casing for housing the CPU and the external storage fromwhose top plate the key faces of the key switches are exposed, whereinthe top plate of the casing has a portion extending from the exposingparts of the key faces toward the front side of properly operating thekeyboard and a part of the extending portion forms a palm rest portion,the external storage is housed below the palm rest portion of the topplate inside the casing and an inorganic antimicrobial agent may beapplied to at least the outside surface of the palm rest portion of thetop plate.

Here, an inorganic antimicrobial agent may be applied also to the keyface of the key switch.

The information processing unit for attaining the other object is aninformation processing unit comprising a CPU, a plurality of keyswitches composing a keyboard, a top plate and a casing for housing theCPU from whose top plate the key faces of the key switches are exposed,wherein the CPU is housed below any one of the key switches inside thecasing and an inorganic antimicrobial agent may be applied to the keyfaces of the key switches.

Here, an inorganic antimicrobial agent may be applied also to theoutside surface of the top plate of the casing.

Besides, in any one of the above information processing units forattaining the other object, the inorganic antimicrobial agent ispreferably an Ag antimicrobial agent.

Besides, in any one of the above information processing units forattaining the other object, the inorganic antimicrobial agent may be analuminosilicate to which Ag ions are added.

The information processing unit or the information processing relatedunit for attaining yet another object is an information processing unitor an information processing related unit having a device having one endface and a casing for detachably housing the device with the one endface exposed, comprising: a cylinder lock having an inner cylinder witha key groove formed on one end face, a hook portion fixed on the otherend face of the inner cylinder, an outer cylinder for housing the innercylinder rotatably in the case of inserting a key in the key groove orunrotatably in the case of inserting no key in the key groove, and alinkage wire with one end attached to the outer cylinder and a linkageportion formed at the other end for being linked to a specified article,wherein the conveyance of the casing is restricted,

a lock hole is formed on the casing which can be inserted into thecasing when the hook portion of the cylinder lock is at a specific angleto the casing and cannot come off as far as it does not become at thespecific angle to the casing if inserted once,

and the lock hole is formed at a position among the surface of thecasing where the other end face of the outer cylinder of the cylinderlock is touchable to the end face of the device inserted in the casingwhen the hook portion of the cylinder lock is inserted into the lockhole.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an information processing unit accordingto one embodiment of the present invention at the unconnected state.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an information processing unit accordingto one embodiment of the present invention at the connected state.

FIG. 3 is a circuit block diagram of an information processing unitaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a circuit block diagram of a power system of an informationprocessing unit according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the main body of an information processing unitaccording to one embodiment of the present invention (display unit inthe open state).

FIG. 6 is a front view of the main body of an information processingunit according to one embodiment of the present invention (IV-arrowedview in FIG. 5).

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the main body of an information processing unitaccording to one embodiment of the present invention (display unit inthe close state).

FIG. 8 is a left side view of the main body of an information processingunit according to one embodiment of the present invention (display unitin the close state).

FIG. 9 is a right side view of the main body of an informationprocessing unit according to one embodiment of the present invention(IX-arrowed view in FIG. 5).

FIG. 10 is a plan arrangement illustration of the main body of aninformation processing unit according to one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 11 is a front arrangement illustration of the main body of aninformation processing unit according to one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 12 is a rear arrangement illustration of the main body of aninformation processing unit according to one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 13 is a left side arrangement illustration of the main body of aninformation processing unit according to one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 14 is a plan view of a file basestation according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a front view of a file basestation according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a rear view of a file basestation according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a left side view of a file basestation according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a sectional view taken along the line XVIII—XVIII of FIG. 14.

FIG. 19 is a sectional view taken along the line XIX—XIX of FIG. 14.

FIG. 20 is a XX-arrowed view of FIG. 19.

FIG. 21 is a plan view of a file basestation according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a front view of a file basestation according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a plan view of a portreplicator according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a front view of a portreplicator according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 25 is a rear view of a portreplicator according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a left side view of a portreplicator according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 27 is a right side view of a portreplicator according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 28 is an illustration of a connection aid mechanism according toone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 29 is a plan view of the main body of an information processingunit according to one embodiment of the present invention, connected toan FD•D.

FIG. 30 is a plan view of a file basestation according to one embodimentof the present invention, connected to the main body of the informationprocessing unit.

FIG. 31 is a front view of a file basestation according to oneembodiment of the present invention, connected to the main body of theinformation processing unit.

FIG. 32 is a rear view of a file basestation according to one embodimentof the present invention, connected to the main body of the informationprocessing unit.

FIG. 33 is a left side view of a file basestation according to oneembodiment of the present invention, connected to the main body of theinformation processing unit.

FIG. 34 is a plan view of a portreplicator according to one embodimentof the present invention, connected to the main body of the informationprocessing unit.

FIG. 35 is a right side view of a portreplicator according to oneembodiment of the present invention, connected to the main body of theinformation processing unit.

FIG. 36 is a sectional view taken along the line XXXVI—XXXVI of FIG. 34.

FIG. 37 is a principally sectional view of a portreplicator according toone embodiment of the present invention, connected to the main body ofanother information processing unit.

FIG. 38 is a plan view of the main body of an information processingunit according to one embodiment of the present invention, connected toa file basestation and a portreplicator.

FIG. 39 is a rear view of the main body of an information processingunit according to one embodiment of the present invention, connected toa file basestation and a portreplicator.

FIG. 40 is a right side view of the main body of an informationprocessing unit according to one embodiment of the present invention,connected to a file basestation and a portreplicator.

FIG. 41 is a side view of a cylinder lock according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 42 is a perspective view of a cylinder lock according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 43 is a plan view of a cylinder lock, connected to the main body ofan information processing unit according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 44 is a left side view of a cylinder lock, connected to the mainbody of an information processing unit according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 45 is a plan view of a cased FD•D according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 46 is a front view of a cased FD•D according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 47 is a plan view of an uncased FD•D according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 48 is a front view of an uncased FD•D according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 49 is a plan view of a cased CD-ROM•D according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 50 is a front view of a cased CD-ROM•D according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 51 is a plan view of an uncased CD-ROM•D according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 52 is a front view of an uncased CD-ROM•D according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 53 is a plan view of an LS-120•D according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 54 is a front view of an LS-120•D according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 55 is a plan view of a ZIP•D according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 56 is a front view of a ZIP•D according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 57 is a plan view of a cased battery according to one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 58 is a front view of a cased battery according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 59 is a plan view of another cased battery according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 60 is a front view of another cased battery according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, an information processing unit according to one embodimentof the present invention will be described referring to the drawings.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the information processing unit in thisembodiment comprises a portable type main body of information processingunit (hereinafter, referred to simply as main body) 10 called portablecomputer, book computer or the like, a file basestation 80 having adetachable external storage, a portreplicator 100 having a plurality ofconnectors for the signal connection to various external equipment and aheight adjusting stand 150 for modifying the provision height of thisportreplicator 100.

The main body 10 comprises a CPU, a memory, a main body casing 60 forhousing these and a display unit 78 having an LCD (Liquid CrystalDisplay) and attached to the main body casing 60. The file basestation80 comprises a B/S (file basestation) casing 90 for detachably housing aplurality of external storages. Besides, the portreplicator 100comprises a P/R (portreplicator) casing 120 with a plurality ofconnectors and a plurality of ports loaded thereon.

In addition to the above-mentioned CPU 11, main memory 12, main bodycasing 60 and the like, as shown in FIG. 3 the main body 10 comprises acash memory 13, a extended memory 14, a system controller 15, a graphicsmemory 16, a graphics controller 17, a modem controller 18, an I/Ocontroller 19, a PC card controller 20, a local bus (PCI: PeripheralComponent Interconnect) 21 for mutually connecting the above controllers15, 17, 18, 19 and 20, a BIOS (Basic Input Output System) ROM 22, anaudio controller 23, a speaker 24 controlled by this sound sourcecontroller 23 to emit a sound, a horn connector 30, a line-in connector31, a peripheral controller 25, a keyboard 47, a track pad 46, a mouseconnector 41 to connect a mouse, a ten key or the like, an indicator 45for the state display, a keyboard controller 26 for controlling akeyboard 47, a track pad 46, a mouse and the like, a battery 50, abattery controller 27 (power supply control means), an external powersupply connector 39, a power switch 40, a power supply control circuit28 (power supply control means) connected to the battery 50 and theexternal power supply connector 39 by means of a power supply line 39 aand connected to the power switch 40 by means of the signal line 40 avia the battery controller 27, a PC card slot 29, a display unit 78connector 42, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) connector 38, a hard diskdrive (hereinafter, abbreviated to HD•D) 49, an external FD•D connectionconnector 37, an Infrared port 35, a parallel connector 36, a serialconnector 34, a cellular connector 33, a modem connector 32, a B/Sdocking connector 59 on the main processing unit side (first dockingconnector on the main processing unit side) for the receiving/sending ofvarious signals and the receiving/sending of power from/to the filebasestation 80 and a P/R docking connector 58 on the main processingunit side (second docking connector on the main processing unit side)for the receiving/sending of various signals and the receiving/sendingof power from/to the portreplicator 100.

Besides, as the above-mentioned external storages, the file basestation80 has the FD•D 81 and the CD-ROM•D 83, both of which are detachablyhoused in the B/S casing 90. Furthermore, the file basestation 80comprises a game port (joy stick port) 85, an external power supplyconnector 86 and a main body docking connector 89 on the B/S side forreceiving/sending of various signals and receiving/sending of powerfrom/to the body 10.

As the various connectors mentioned above, the portreplicator 100 has amodem connector 112, a game port 105, speaker connectors 114 and 114, amicrophone connector 107, two serial connectors 104 and 104, a parallelconnector 106, a display unit connector 102, a USB connector 108, amouse connector 101, a keyboard connector 103, an external power supplyconnector 109 and a main body docking connector 118 on the P/R side forthe receiving/sending of various signals from/to the main body 10 andthe receiving/sending of power. Furthermore, the portreplicator 100 hasa power switch 110 as well.

Here, the power supply concerns of the main body 10, the filebasestation 80 and the portreplicator 100 will be briefly describedreferring to FIG. 4.

As mentioned above, the main body 10, the file basestation 80 and theportreplicator 100 have their own external power supply connectors 39,86 and 109, respectively. The external power supply connector 39 of themain body 10 is connected to a power supply control circuit 28 by meansof a power supply line 39 a. In the case in which the main body dockingconnector 89 on the B/S side is connected to the B/S docking connector59 on the main processing unit side (hereinafter, the file basestation80 and the main body 10 are assumed to be connected), the external powersupply connector 86 of the file basestation 80 is electrically connectedto the power supply control circuit 28 of the main body 10 via a powersupply line 86 a in the file basestation 80, a power pin of the mainbody docking connector 89 on the B/S side, a power pin of the B/Sdocking connector 59 on the main processing unit side and a power supplyline 39 a in the main body 10. Besides, in the case in which the mainbody docking connector 118 on the P/R side is connected to the P/Rdocking connector 58 on the body (hereinafter, the portreplicator 100and the main body 10 are assumed to be connected), the external powersupply connector 109 of the portreplicator 100 is electrically connectedto the power supply control circuit 28 of the main body 10 via a powersupply line 109 a in the portreplicator 100, a power pin of the mainbody docking connector 118 on the P/R side, a power pin of the P/Rdocking connector 58 on the main processing unit side and a power supplyline 39 a in the main body 10. Namely, when the file basestation 80 andthe main body 10 are connected to each other, the external powersupplied to the file basestation 80 is basically sent to the powersupply control circuit 28 of the main body 10 once. Besides, when theportreplicator 100 and the main body 10 are connected to each other, theexternal power supplied to the portreplicator 100 is also basically sentto the power supply control circuit 28 of the main body 10 once. Aftersetting the power from an external power source and the power from abattery 50 to a specific voltage, the power supply control circuit 28sends the power not only to individual equipment, elements or the likeof the main body 10 but also to the file basestation 80 and theportreplicator 100 via the power supply line 39 b in the main body 10and power supply pins of individual docking connectors 59, 89, 58 and118. The power supply control circuit 28 intercepts the transmission tothe file basestation 80 if the main body 10 and the file basestation 80are not connected and intercepts the transmission to the portreplicator100 if the main body 10 and the portreplicator 100 are not connected.

As mentioned above, the main body 10 and the portreplicator 100 has thepower supply switches 40 and 110, respectively. The supply switch 40 ofthe main body 10 is connected via the battery controller 27 to the powersupply control circuit 28 by means of the signal line 40 a. If theportreplicator 100 and the main body 10 are connected, the supply switch110 of the portreplicator 100 is connected via the signal line 110 a inthe portreplicator 100, the main body docking connector 118 on the P/Rside, the P/R docking connector 58 on the main processing unit side, thesignal line 40 a in the main body 10 and the battery controller 27 tothe power supply control circuit 28. In the case in which the main body10, file basestation 80 and the portreplicator 100 are connected, poweris sent from the power supply control circuit 28 to either of themcorrespondingly and it is started even if any of the power switches 40and 110 is turned on. For example, when the main body 10 and the filebasestation 80 are started to listen to the music or the like recordedin a CD-ROM with the CD-ROM inserted into the CD-ROM•D 83 of the filebasestation 80, the power switch 40 of the main body 10 is provided onthe top plate 61 of the main body casing 60 (shown in FIG. 5) asdescribed below and this power switch 40 can be manipulated only afterthe display unit 78 is opened. In contrast to this, the power switch 110of the portreplicator 100 is provided on the right lateral plate 128 ofthe P/R casing 120 (shown in FIG. 27) as described below and this powerswitch 100 can be manipulated even if the display unit remains closed.Like this, by having the power switches 40 and 110 for starting the mainbody 10 provided on other places than the main body 10, the usingconvenience of the information processing unit can be improved.Incidentally, the provision of the power switch 40 of the main body 10on the top face 61 of the main body casing 60 is for the purpose ofpreventing this power switch 40 from contacting anything to lead to anunexpected start of the main body 10 while it is carried about if thepower switch 40 is mounted at a location covered by the display 78.Besides, here, the power switches 40 and 110 are provided on the mainbody 10 and the portreplicator 100, but a similar power switch may bealso provided on the file basestation 80.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 5-9, the main body casing 60, assuming theshape of a nearly rectangular parallelopiped, has a top plate 61, abottom plate 63 opposed to the top plate 61, a front plate 65, a backplate 66 opposed to the front plate 65 and both lateral plates 67 and 68opposed to each other. Near the border between the top plate 61 and theback plate 66 of the main body casing 60, the display unit 78 isoscillatably attached to the main body casing 60. With this embodiment,as shown in FIG. 5, the depth of the main body casing 60, or the mutualspacing between the front plate 65 and the back plate 66, is 245 mm andthe width of the main body casing 60, or the mutual spacing between boththe lateral plates 67 and 68, is 310 mm. On the back-plate side of thetop plate 61, a speaker 24 and an indicator 45, a suspended ridium 43, acover down switch 44 for moving to the power saving mode for the displayunit 78 on closing the display unit 78 and a power switch 40 areprovided. The front-plate side of the top plate 61 forms a palm restportion 62 on which to rest hands when manipulating the keyboard 47 anda track pad 46 is provided at the center of this palm rest port 62. Fromthe top plate 61 between the speaker 24 or the like and the palm restportion 62, the key faces of a plurality of key switches 48, 48, . . .composing the keyboard 47 are exposed. At the border between the topplate 61 and the front plate 65, a power lamp 51 indicating that themain body 10 is Power ON and a charge lamp 52 indicating that thebattery 50 is charging are provided as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. Onto theouter surface of the palm rest portion 62 of the top plate 61 and thekey faces of the key switches 48, an added paint of Ag ions to analuminosilicate is applied. The added ones of Ag ions to analuminosilicate act as antimicrobial agents excellent in durability andheat resistance.

On the back plate 66 of the main body casing 60, a mouse connector 41,an infrared port 35, a parallel connector 36, a serial connector 34, adisplay unit connector 42 and a P/R docking connector on the mainprocessing unit side 58 are provided as shown in FIGS. 7 and 12. For theparallel connector 36, the serial connector 34 and the display unitconnector 42, a cover 66 a for blocking these when unused is provided(FIG. 7). Besides, for the P/R docking connector 58 on the mainprocessing unit side 58, a cover 66 b for blocking this when unused isprovided (FIG. 7).

On the left lateral plate 67 of the main body plate 60, an externalpower supply connector 39, a USB connector 38, an external FD•Dconnecting connector 37, a horn connector 30, a line-in connector 31, alock hole 67 b of the cylinder lock described later and an HD•D insertport 67 c are provided as shown in FIGS. 8 and 13. For the external FD•Dconnecting connector 37, a cover 67 a for blocking this 66 b when unusedis provided (FIG. 8). On the right lateral plate 68 of the main bodycasing 60, a battery insert port 68 a, a PC card insert port 68 b, acellular connector 33 and a modem connector 32 are provided

Beneath the key board 47, a CPU board for mounting a CPU 11, a cashmemory 13 and a system controller 15, an extended memory 14 and PC cardslots 29 are provided as shown in FIG. 10. Like this, by having a CPUport or an extended memory 14 provided beneath the key board 47, theassembling efficiency at the manufacturing can be raised and moreover anease of memory expansion by a user can be enhanced. This is because theCPU board is exposed directly after removing the keyboard 47 from thetop plate 61 of the casing 60. Into the PC card slot 29, a PC card canbe inserted through the PC card insert port 68 b of the left lateralplate 67. On the left lateral plate below the palm rest portion 62 ofthe top plate 61, a HD•D 49 is provided and this HD•D 49 can be putthrough the HD•D insert port 67 c of the left lateral plate 67 into/outof the main body casing 60. On the right lateral plate below the palmrest portion 62 of the top plate 61, a battery 50 is provided and thisbattery 50 can be put through the battery insert port 68 a into/out ofthe main body casing 60. On the bottom plate 63 of the main body casing60, a B/S docking connector 59 on the main processing unit side, alinked nut 57 (linked tool) for a sufficiently strong linkage at thetime of linkage to the file basestation 80 and a pin hole 64 to put theconnection aid pin 141 (shown in FIG. 35) described above are provided.

In recent years, onto a direct touch portion of human hands, such asdoor knob, an organic antimicrobial agent is often applied. Accordingly,also with computers, it is sufficiently thinkable that an antimicrobialagent is applied to key faces or the palm rest portion, touched by humanhands. As with this embodiment, however, if there is a CPU 11 subject toheating below key switches 48 or there is an HD•D 49 subject to heatingbelow the palm rest portion 62, no antimicrobial efficacy is expectablefor organic antimicrobial agents because of a low heat resistance. Thus,with this embodiment, an inorganic antimicrobial agent high in heatresistance is applied to key faces or the palm rest portion 62 inconsideration of heating in the CPU 11 or the HD•D 49. Especially, withthis embodiment, since an added inorganic antimicrobial agent of Ag ionsto an aluminosilicate is used as mentioned above, its heat resistance isvery high and it withstands as high temperature as about 500° C. andfurther can be used even if mixed into the resin forming a main bodycasing 60 or key switches 48 at molding. Besides, this added inorganicantimicrobial agent of Ag ions to an aluminosilicate is very high alsoin the antimicrobial efficacy to various bacilli such as Escherichiacoli, Salmonella and Staphylococcus aureus.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 14-17, the B/S casing 90, assuming a nearlyrectangular parallelopiped, has a top plate 91, a bottom plate 93opposed to the top plate 91, a front plate 95, a back plate 96 opposedto the front plate 95 and both lateral plates 97 and 98 opposed to eachother. Both lateral plate sides of the back plate 66 cave in toward thefront-plate side and these form recess 99. With this embodiment, asshown in FIG. 14 the depth of the B/S casing 90, or the mutual spacingbetween the front plate 95 and the back plate 96, is 245 mm, equal tothe mutual spacing between the front plate 65 and the back plate 66 ofthe main body casing 60, the width of the B/S casing 90 or the mutualspacing between both the lateral plates 97 and 98, is 310 mm, equal tothe mutual spacing between both the lateral plates 67 and 68 of the mainbody casing 60. On the top plate 91 of the B/S casing 90, a main bodydocking connector 89 on the B/S side and a linkage bolt 87 are provided.The main body docking connector 89 on the B/S side and linkage bolt 87are provided in the position in which main body docking connector 89 onthe B/S side of the file basestation 80 is connected to the B/S dockingconnector 59 on the main processing unit side of the body 10 and theliking bolt 87 of the file basestation 80 can be screwed into the likednut 57 of the main body 10 when the bottom plate 63 of the main bodycasing 60 is placed on the top plate 91 of the B/S casing 90 and thefront/back plates 95 and 96 and both lateral plates 97 and 98 of the B/Scasing 90 are made coincident with the front/back plates 65 and 66 andboth lateral plates 67 and 68 of the main body casing 60.

On the front plate 95 of the B/S casing 90, an FD•D insert port 95 a anda CD-ROM•D insert port 95 b are provided as shown in FIG. 15 and theFD•D 81 and the CD-ROM•D 83 can be put respectively through the insertports 95 a and 95 b into/out of the B/S casing 90 as shown in FIG. 15.In this embodiment, because of the premise that they can be put into/outof the B/S casing 90 as mentioned above, the FD•D 81 and the CD-ROM•D 83are cased and are put into/out of the B/S casing 90 with individualcases. As shown in FIGS. 47 and 48, the dimensions of a FD•D 81 awithout the case are 96 mm in width and 126 mm in depth, while those 81of an FD•D 81 a put in case 81 c are 105 mm in width and 150 mm in depthas shown in FIGS. 45 and 46. Besides, as shown in FIGS. 51 and 52, thedimensions of a CD-ROM•D 83 a without the case are 128 mm in maximumwidth and 129 mm in depth, while those 83 of a CD-ROM•D 83 a put in case83 c are 135 mm in width and 152.2 mm in depth as shown in FIGS. 49 and50. In individual cases 81 c and 83 c of an FD•D 81 and a CD-ROM•D 83,the respective connectors 81 b and 83 b for receiving/sending a signalare provided.

On the left lateral plate 97 of the B/S casing 90, an external powersupply connector 86 and a game port 85 are provided as shown in FIG. 17.

At the border of the front plate 95 with the top plate 91, a front platepositioning member 95 c is provided as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, at theborder of the back plate 96 with the top plate 91, a back platepositioning member 96 c is provided as shown in FIGS. 14 and 16 and atthe border of the left lateral plate 97 with the top plate 91, a leftlateral plate positioning member 97 c (connector connection regulatingmember) is provided as shown in FIGS. 14 and 17. All of thesepositioning members 95 c, 96 c and 97 c extend vertically upward to thetop plate 61 and serve to position the main body 10 to the filebasestation 80 by coming into contact with the front plate 65, the backplate 66 and the left lateral plate 67 of the main body casing 60 whenconnecting the main body 10. Especially, the front-plate positioningmember 95 c extends to the back-plate side in parallel to the top plate61 after vertically extending upward to the top plate 61 as shown inFIG. 18 and this portion 95 d or hanged portion 95 d is hanged on thefront plate 65 of the main body casing 60 when connecting the main body10 to the file basestation 80 to retain the ordinary connecting strengthtogether with the docking connectors 59 and 89.

As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, a linking knob 88 is provided on the bolthead 87 b of the linking bolt 87 mentioned above. In conjunction withthe linking knob 88, the linking bolt 87 is provided so as to beunrotatable around the axis of the linking bolt 87 and as to berelatively movable in the axial direction of the linking bolt 87. Thelinking knob 88 is exposed from the bottom plate 93 of the B/S casing 90and is provided so as to be unmovable to this bottom plate 93 andrelatively rotatable. Between the bolt head 87 b of the linking bolt 87and the linking knob 88, a coil spring 88 b is disposed. In anunconnected state of the main body 10 and the file basestation 80, thescrew portion 87 a (engaging portion) of the linking bolt 87 protrudesvertically upward from the top plate 91 of the B/S casing 90. In thisstate, when any article falls into contact with it, the screw portion 87a of the linking bolt 87 is embedded in the B/S casing 90. Thus, in asimply connected state of the main body 10 and the file basestation 80,in other words, in a simply connected state of the B/S docking connector59 on the main processing unit side and the main body docking connector89 on the B/S side, the tip of the linking bolt 87 falls into contactwith the end face of the above linked nut 57 (linked tool) of the mainbody 10 and the screw portion 87 a of the linking bolt 87 is embedded inthe B/S casing 90. From this state, when the linking bolt 87 is rotatedby rotating the linking knob 88 exposed from the bottom plate 93 of theB/S casing 90, the screw portion 87 a of the linking bolt 87 comes toprotrude from the top plate 61 while rotated and is gradually embeddedinto the linked nut 57 of the main body 10. Like this, by having thelinking bolt 87 and the linking knob 88, composing components ofmechanical linking means, provided on the file basestation side, as wellas the linked nut 57 composing a component of mechanical linking meansprovided on the main processing unit side, the connecting strength ofthe main body 10 to the file basestation 80 can be raised. Incidentally,the connecting strength of the linked nut 57 of the main body 10 to theliking bolt 87 of the file basestation 80 is as strong as capable ofretaining the connection of both of them 10 and 80 even if such aheavier weight than the self weight is imposed on either of them as todisconnect the other. Thus, by using the connection by this mechanicallinking means when conveying the file basestation 80 together with themain body 10, in addition to the connection by the docking connectors 59and 89 of both of them 10 and 80 and the connection by the front-platepositioning member 95 c of the file basestation 80, the file basestation80 is not shaken to the main body 10, thus enabling damages to thedocking connectors 59 and 89 of both to be prevented.

Incidentally, with this embodiment, the FD•D 81 and the CD-ROM•D 83 areprovided in the B/S casing 90, but the HD•D 82 can be further providedas shown in FIGS. 21 and 22. Besides, for a kind of high-density recordmedium, such as LS-120 or ZIP, that has begun to be used in recent yearsin place of the FD•D 81, for example, an LS-120•D or ZIP•D for therecord/playback can be also provided. As shown in FIGS. 53 and 54, thedimensions of an LS-120•D 161 are 96 mm in width and 126 mm in depth andany dimension is smaller than that of a cased FD•D 81, so that it can behoused in the B/S casing 90 together with a CD-ROM•D 83 and HD•D 82.Besides these, in the B/S casing 90, an external storage such asDVD•(Digital Video Disk) D can be also in the B/S casing 90.Furthermore, a battery may be housed in addition to the external storagelike the above. In this case, by diverting the FD•D case 81 c or theCD-ROM•D case 83 c to the case for a battery 163 or 164 as shown inFIGS. 57-60, the compatibility with the FD•D 81 or CD-ROM•D 83 can beretained in view of layout.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 23-27, the P/R casing 120, assuming anearly rectangular parallelopiped, has a top plate 121, a bottom plate123 opposed to the top plate 121, a front plate 125, a back plate 126opposed to the front plate 125, both lateral plates 127 and 128 opposedto each other and a pin guide piece 129 for guiding the connection aidpin 141 (shown in FIG. 35) described later. With this embodiment, themutual spacing between both lateral plates 127 and 128 of the P/R casing120, is 310 mm, equal to the mutual spacing between both lateral plates67 and 68 of the main body casing 60 and between both lateral plates 97and 98 of the B/S casing 90 as shown in FIG. 25. On the top plate 121 ofthe P/R casing 120, a lever 144 for moving the connection aid pin 141 isprovided oscillatably.

On the front plate 125 of the P/R casing 120, the main body dockingconnector 118 on the P/R side and the high-temperature air intake 125 aare provided as shown in FIG. 24. In the front plate 125 of the P/Rcasing 120, the main body docking connector 118 on the P/R side isprovided in such a position as to be connected to the B/S dockingconnector 59 on the main processing unit side when this front plate 125is brought into contact with the back plate 66 of the main body casing60 and both lateral plates 127 and 128 of the P/R casing 120 are madecoincident in position with both lateral plates 67 and 68 of the mainbody casing 60. The pin guide member 129 is provided on bothlateral-plate sides and on the bottom-plate side of the front plate 125.

On the back plate 126 of the P/R casing 120, a game port 105, a parallelconnector 106, two serial connectors 104 and 104, a display unitconnector 102, a microphone connector 107, speaker connectors 114 and114 and an external power supply connector 109 are provided as shown inFIG. 25. On the left lateral plate 127 of the P/R casing 120, a modemconnector 112 and a USB connector 108 are provided as shown in FIG. 26.Besides, on the right lateral plate 128 of the P/R casing 120, a mouseconnector 101, a keyboard connector 103 and a power switch 110 areprovided as shown in FIG. 27. The depth of this P/R casing 120, or themutual spacing between the front plate 125 and the back plate 126, is 80mm. Because of mainly serving to load numerous connectors, the P/Rcasing 120 is easy in making its depth less than 80 mm. With thisembodiment, to enable a PC card slot or the like to be providedafterward and to afford a feeling of presence as a installing base, thedepth of the P/R casing 120 is set to 80 mm. Besides, by setting thedepth dimension to a relatively large value like this, the stability ofsingle installation can be secured even if this casing is connected to arelatively thick cable such as display unit cable or power supply cable.

In the P/R casing 120, a first link piece 142 and a second link piece143 for moving the connection aid pin 141 by an action of the lever 144mentioned above are provided as shown in FIG. 28. These link members 142and 143, the lever 144 and the connection aid pin 141 compose a mainbody connection aid mechanism 140. The lever 144 has its base endoscillatably pin-linked with the top plate 121. The middle drum of thelever 144 and one end of the second link member 143 are pin-linked, andthe other end of the second link member 143 and one end of the firstlink member 142 are pin-linked. Fixed at the other end of the first linkmember 142 is the connection aid pin 141. In the above arrangement, theconnection aid pin 141 moves forward when lifting the tip of the lever144 around its base end and the connection aid pin 141 moves backwardwhen lowering the tip of the lever 144. Incidentally, the actualconnecting action of the main body 10 to the portreplicator 100 by meansof this main body connection aid mechanism 140 will be described below.

When singly using the main body 10 of an information processing unit, asshown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 9, the display unit 78 is opened and the powerswitch 40 provided on the top plate of the main body casing 60 isdepressed to start the main body 10. At this time, if an external powersupply cable is connected to the external power supply connector 39 ofthe main body 10, the main body 10 is driven by this external powersupply using AC adaptor or driven by the battery 50 in the main body 10if not connected to the external power supply connector 39 of the mainbody 10. When it is desired to use an FD, as shown in FIG. 29,connecting the cased FD•D 81 in the B/S casing or the connector 81 b ofthe cased FD•D 81 of the same kind to the external FD•D connectingconnector 37 provided on the left lateral plate 67 of the main body 10by means of the cable 166 enables use of an FD in this cased FD•D 81. Inending the use of the main body 10 of the information processing unit,the power switch 40 is depressed and the power supply of the main body10 is turned off before closing the display unit 78. Incidentally, whenclosing the display unit 78 without depressing the power switch 40, thedisplay unit 78 depresses the cover down switch 44 provided on the topplate 61 of the main body casing 60, thereby shutting off the powersupplied to the display unit 78.

When using the file basestation 80 together with the main body, the mainbody 10 is superimposed on the top plate 91 of the file basestation 80as shown in FIGS. 30-33. At this time, since individual positioningguides 95 c, 96 c and 97 c provided on the file basestation 80 comesinto contact respectively with the front plate 65, the back plate 66 andthe left lateral plate 67 to correctly position the main body 10 to thefile basestation 80, the front plate 65, the back plate 66 and bothlateral plates 67 and 68 of the main body 10 coincide in position withthe front plate 95, the back plate 96 and both lateral plates 97 and 98of the file basestation 80. Then, the main body docking connector 89 onthe B/S side provided on the top plate 61 of the file basestation 80 isconnected to the B/S docking connector 59 on the main processing unitside provided on the bottom plate 63 of the main body 10, therebyenabling the receiving/sending of a signal and power between both ofthem 10 and 80. In an actual case of using the main body 10 under thissituation, the display unit 78 is opened and the power switch 40provided on the top plate 61 of the main body 10 is depressed as withthe single use of the main body 10 to start the main body 10 and thefile basestation 80. As the power supply of the main body 10 and thefile basestation 80, not only the battery of the main body 10 but alsoan external power source through the external power supply connector 39of the main body 10 or through the external power supply connector 86 ofthe file basestation 80 is considered, but under these circumstances, itis preferable to connect the external power source to the external powersupply connector 86 of the file basestation 80 and employ this externalpower source as the drive power source of the main body 10 and the filebasestation 80.

In the connected situation of the main body 10 to the file basestation80, as shown in FIG. 33, the left-lateral plate positioning member 97 c(connector connection regulating member) provided on the left lateralplate 97 of the B/S casing 90 covers a part of the external FD•Dconnecting connector 37. As a result, in the connected situation of themain body 10 to the file basestation 80, the FD•D 81 cannot be connectedvia a cable to an external FD•D connecting connector 37 and the FD•D 81in the B/S casing 90 ends in being used exclusively.

When the main body 10 and the file basestation 80 are carried with bothbeing connected, the linking knob 88 exposed from the bottom plate 93 ofthe B/S casing 90 is rotated and the liking bolt 87 of the B/S casing 90is screwed into the linked nut 57 provided on the bottom plate 63 of themain body 10 as described referring to FIGS. 19 and 20. Then, not onlyby the connection using the docking connectors 59 and 89 of both and theone using the front-plate positioning member 95 c but also by that ofthe linking bolt 87 of the file basestation 80 to the linked nut 57 ofthe main body 10, the main body 10 and the file basestation 80 arefirmly linked.

In the case of using the main body 10 and the portreplicator 100, first,the lever 144 of the portreplicator 100 is lifted and the connection aidpin 141 is positioned forward as shown in FIG. 28. Under this situation,the connection aid pin 141 of the portreplicator 100 is put into the pinhole 64 formed on the bottom plate 63 of the main body 10 as shown inFIG. 36. And on depressing the lever 144 of the portreplicator 100, theconnection aid pin 141 moves backward to connect the P/R dockingconnector 58 on the main processing unit side 10 to the main bodydocking connector 118 on the P/R side, thereby enabling thereceiving/sending of a signal and power between both of them 10 and 100.In an actual case of using the main body 10 under this situation, thedisplay unit 78 is opened and the power switch 40 provided on the topplate 61 of the main body 10 is depressed as with the single use of themain body 10 to start the main body 10 and the portreplicator 100. Asthe power supply of the main body 10 and the portreplicator 100, notonly the battery 50 of the main body 10 but also an external powersource through the external power supply connector 39 of the main body10 or through the external power supply connector 109 of theportreplicator 100 is considered, but under this situation, it ispreferable to connect the external power source to the external powersupply connector 109 of the portreplicator 100 and employ this externalpower source as the drive power source of the main body 10 and theportreplicator 100. Since the portreplicator 100 is equipped withsimilar connectors, such as, to be specific, a modem connector 112, aserial connector 104, a parallel connector 106, a display unit connector102, a USB connector 108, a mouse connector 101 and an external powersupply connector 109, to various connectors provided on the mainprocessing unit side 10, it is preferable to use these connectors 112,104, 106, 102, 108, 101 and 109 without use of the connectors 32, 34,36, 42, 38, 41 and 39 of the main body 10. In this manner, apreferential use of various connectors of the portreplicator 100 in aconnected situation of the portreplicator 100 and the main body 10 canomit the labor of disconnecting the cable connected to each connectorwhen carrying the main body 10 with it removed from the portreplicator100.

With this embodiment, the level difference between the bottom plate 63of the main body 10 and the main body docking connector 118 on the P/Rside is 9 mm as shown in FIG. 36. In the connected situation of the mainbody 10 and the portreplicator 100, the back-face side of the bottomplate 63 of the main body 10 is kept to float both from the mountingplane of a desk or the like and from the pin guide member 129 of theportreplicator 100 with the bottom of the pin hole 64 of the main body10 supported on the tip of the connection aid pin 141 in order to makethe level of the P/R docking connector 58 on the main processing unitside from the mounting plane of a desk or the like coincident with thelevel of the main body docking connector 118 on the P/R side from themounting plane.

Such floating of the back-face side of the bottom plate 63 of the mainbody 10 both from the mounting plane of a desk or the like and from thepin guide member 129 of the portreplicator 100 is for the purpose ofmaking a portreplicator 100 according to this embodiment usable for themain body 10 x of another information processing unit as shown in FIG.37. The main body 10 x of another information processing unit shown inFIG. 37 has a CPU higher in performance than the main body 10 of theinformation processing unit mentioned above and its thickness is large.Besides, in another information processing unit 10 x, the leveldifference between the bottom plate 63 x of the main body 10 x and themain body docking connector 58 x on the P/R side is 12.9 mm. In aconnected situation of this other main body 10 x to the portreplicator100, the back side of the bottom plate 63 x this other main body 10 x issupported on the pin guide member 129 of the portreplicator 100 with thebottom of the pin hole 64 x of this other main body 10 x kept out ofcontact with the tip of the connection aid pin 141 in order to make thelevel of the P/R docking connector 58 x on the main processing unit sidefrom the mounting plane of a desk or the like coincident with the levelof the main body docking connector 118 on the P/R side from the mountingplane. Namely, the difference of the level difference between the bottomplate 63 x of the main body 10 x and the P/R docking connector 58 x onthe main processing unit side from the level difference between thebottom plate 63 of the main body 10 and the P/R docking connector 58 onthe main processing unit side can be coped with by a change in therespective depth of the pin holes 64 and 64 x. Incidentally, thehigh-temperature air intake 125 a mentioned above by referring to FIG.24 in the front plate 125 of the P/R casing 120 for exhausting ahigh-temperature air from the back plate 66 x (FIG. 37) of the main body10 x of this other information processing unit is provided to cool thehigh performance CPU when the main body 10 x of another informationprocessing unit is connected to the portreplicator 100.

In the case of the above information processing units at the mainmanipulating place of an operator, its use in a connection of the mainbody 10 of an information processing unit to a file basestation 80 andto a portreplicator 100 is preferable as shown in FIGS. 38-40. In thiscase, as shown in FIG. 40, the main body 10 and the portreplicator 100end in floating from the mounting plane of a desk or the like by thethickness of a file basestation 80. Because of being placed on the filebasestation 80, the main body 10 has no problem, but the portreplicator100 is forced to fall into a suspended situation due to the occurrenceof its space from the mounting plane. Thus, in this embodiment, a heightadjusting stand 150 is used which is substantially equal in thickness tothe file basestation 80, and has a top plate 151 so shaped as to beoverlapped on the bottom plate 123 of the portreplicator 100 and the pinguide member 129 integrated therewith. Incidentally, in a connectedsituation of all the three 10, 80 and 100, the pin guide member supportportion 159 of this height adjusting stand 150 interposes in the recess99 of the file basestation 80.

When using the main body 10 of the information processing unit to thefile basestation 80 and the portreplicator 100 in their connectedsituation, the display unit 78 is opened and the power switch 40provided on the top plate 61 of the main body 10 is depressed as withthe single use of the main body 10 to start all the three of 10, 80 and100. Besides, as mentioned above, when inserting a CD-ROM in theCD-ROM•D 83 of the file basestation 80 and listening to the music or thelike recorded in this CD-ROM, the power switch 110 of the portreplicator100 may be depressed to start all the three of 10, 80 and 100 with thedisplay unit 78 kept close.

In a connected situation of all the three of 10, 80 and 100, apreferential use of various connectors of the portreplicator 100 ispreferred as with a connection of both the main body 10 and theportreplicator 100. This is because the labor of disconnecting the cableof each connector can be omitted both in the case of carrying the mainbody 10 of its own, or carrying the file basestation 80 together withthe main body 10.

In recent years, to prevent the theft of information processing units atsale stores of information processing unit, a cylinder lock 170 with alinking wire 175 attached, referred to as Kensington lock is used asshown in FIG. 41. As shown in FIG. 42, this cylinder lock 170 comprisesan inner cylinder 171 with a key groove 172 formed on one end face 171a, a hook section 173 fixed on the other end face of the inner cylinder171 and an outer cylinder 174 for housing the inner cylinder 171. Asshown in FIG. 41, the liking wire 175 has one end 175 a attached to theouter cylinder 174 of the cylinder lock 170 and a linking portion 175 bformed on the other end. The inner cylinder 171 becomes rotatabletogether with a key to the outer cylinder 174 when the key is insertedinto the key groove 172 and unrotatable to the outer cylinder 174 withno key in section into the key groove 172. The hook section 173 fixed tothe other end face of the inner cylinder 171 protrudes from the otherend face 174 b of the outer cylinder 174 and rotates with the rotationof the inner cylinder 171. In the casing of an information processingunit, a lock hole is formed in advance through which a key can beinserted if the hook section 173 of the cylinder lock 170 has a specificrotation angle to the casing and cannot be removed unless the hooksection 173 becomes a specific rotation angle once the key is inserted.And, the hook section 173 of the cylinder lock 170 is put into the lockhole on the casing, a key is thrusted into the key groove 172 of thecylinder lock 170 and the inner cylinder 171 and the hook section 173are rotated with the rotation of this key to make the hook section 173unremovable out of the lock hole, that is, to make the cylinder lock 170undetachable from the casing. On the other hand, the linking portion 175b of the linking wire 175 attached to the outer cylinder 174 of thecylinder lock 170 is hung on a bar or the like of commodity shelves.Then, the information processing unit is linked with a bar or the likeof commodity shelves via a so-called Kensington lock 170.

Formerly, in cases where information processing units equipped withdetachable FD•D, HD•D or the like are placed at the store, informationprocessing units with FD•D, HD•D or the like detached are linked withbars or the like of commodity shelves via Kensington locks 170 in orderto prevent the theft. However, detaching the FD•D, HD•D, even if neededfor the prevention of theft, results in no sufficient exhibition ofperformances of information processing units arranged at the store, thusincurring dissatisfaction for users. Besides, in general work places, awork of detaching the FD•D, HD•D or the like intentionally for theprevention of theft when information processing units are out of use andof inserting the FD•D, HD•D or the like when in use is very troublesome.

Such being the case, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the lockhole 67 b mentioned above is formed near the HD•D insert port 67 c ofthe main body casing 60. If a lock hole 67 b is formed near the HD•Dinsert port 67 c of the main body casing 60 like this, a part of theouter cylinder 174 of the cylinder lock 170 juts out to the HD•D insertport 67 c when attaching a cylinder lock 170 to this lock hole 67 b andthe front end face 49 a of the HD•D 49 comes into contact with the outercylinder 174 of the cylinder lock 170 as shown in FIGS. 43 and 44, sothat the HD•D 49 cannot be detached from the main body casing 60. Thus,the formation of a lock hole 67 b near the HD•D insert port 67 c of themain body casing 60 can prevent the theft of the main body 10 of aninformation processing unit and moreover the theft of an HD•D 49 evenwithout intentional removal of the HD•D 49 from the main body 10.

Incidentally, here, an HD•D 49 detachable from the main body of aninformation processing unit is taken as an example, but a similar factis enabled for an FD•D 81 or a CD-ROM•D 83 detachable from the filebasestation 80 as an information processing related unit. Namely, theprovision of a lock hole near the FD•D insert port 95 a or the CD-ROM•Dinsert port 95 b of the B/S casing 90 can prevent the theft of an FD•D81 or CD-ROM•D 83. Besides, any of these relates to external storagestaken as examples, but is not limited to external storages and a similarfact is enabled for those detachable from the casing, such as, e.g.,battery and the like.

Advantages of the Invention

According to the present invention, since the information processingunit comprises a main body, a file basestation and a portreplicator towhich many cables are connected, removal of the main body alone orremoval of the main body and the file basestation can omit the labor ofdisconnecting many individual cables connected to the portreplicatorboth in the case of singly carrying the main body and in the case ofcarrying the file basestation together with the main body.

1. An information processing unit main body comprising: a displayapparatus; a CPU; a memory, and an input means, wherein said informationprocessing unit main body has an information processing unit main bodyside docking connector which directly connects said informationprocessing unit main body to an I/O device connected to an outer portionof said information processing unit main body, and sends and receives anelectric power and a signal with respect to said I/O device via saidinformation processing unit side docking connector and an I/O deviceside docking connector provided in said I/O device.
 2. An informationprocessing unit main body as claimed in claim 1, further comprising abattery for storing the electric power which is sent and received viasaid information processing unit side docking connector.
 3. Aninformation processing unit main body as claimed in claim 1, wherein theelectric power supplied from an external portion of said I/O device andthe signal sent and received therefrom are sent and received via saidI/O device and said information processing apparatus side dockingconnector.
 4. An information processing unit main body as claimed inclaim 1, wherein said information processing unit main body has aninformation processing apparatus main body side positioning means bywhich said information processing unit main body is connected to saidI/O device at a predetermined position at a time of connecting to saidI/O device, and said information processing unit side positioning meansand an I/O device side positioning means provided in said I/O device arein contact with each other, said information processing unit sidedocking connector and said I/O device side docking connector are incontact with each other, and said information processing unit main bodyis supported, whereby a position at which said information processingunit main body is directly connected to said I/O device is determined.5. An information processing unit main body as claimed in claim 2,wherein said information processing unit main body further has anotherconnector to which another I/O device is connected, and supplies anelectric power stored in said battery to said another I/O device andsends and receives a signal, via said another connector.
 6. Aninformation processing unit main body as claimed in claim 2, whereinanother I/O device which can be connected to said information processingunit side docking connector and is different from said I/O device isconnected to said information processing unit side docking connector,and supplies the electric power stored in said battery and sends andreceives a signal, with respect to said another I/O device via saidinformation processing unit side docking connector.
 7. An informationprocessing unit main body as claimed in claim 2, further comprisinganother connector to which another I/O device is connected, wherein theelectric power stored in said battery is supplied and a signal is sentand received with respect to another I/O device different from said I/Odevice which can be connected to said another I/O device or saidinformation processing unit side docking connector, via said informationprocessing unit side docking connector and said another connector.
 8. Aninformation processing unit main body as claimed in claim 5, whereinsaid information processing unit is detachably connected to said I/Odevice, uses the electric power supplied and received via saidinformation processing unit side docking connector by priority andsupplies the electric power to said another I/O device in the case thatsaid I/O device is connected, and uses the electric power stored in saidbattery and supplied the electric power to said another I/O device inthe case that said I/O device is not connected.
 9. An I/O deviceconnected to an information processing unit main body having a displayapparatus, a CPU, a memory and an input means, wherein said I/O devicehas an I/O device side docking connector which is directly connected tosaid information processing unit main body, and sends and receives anelectric power and a signal with respect to said information processingunit main body via an information processing unit main body side dockingconnector provided in said information processing unit main body andsaid I/O device side docking connector.
 10. An I/O device as claimed inclaim 9, wherein the electric power supplied from an external portion ofsaid I/O device and the signal sent and received therefrom are sent andreceived with respect to said information processing unit main body viasaid I/O device side docking connector and said information processingapparatus side docking connector.
 11. An I/O device as claimed in claim9, wherein said I/O device has an I/O device side positioning means bywhich said information processing unit main body is connected to saidI/O device at a predetermined position at a time of connecting to saidinformation processing unit main body, and an information processingunit side positioning means provided in the information processing unitmain body and said I/O device side positioning means are in contact witheach other, said information processing unit side docking connector andsaid I/O device side docking connector are in contact with each other,and said information processing unit main body is supported, whereby aposition at which said information processing unit main body is directlyconnected to said I/O device is determined.